Ahmedabad man arrested for robbery-murder in Raipur in 2021

Five years after the murder of a woman in Chhattisgarh's Raipur, the key accused, who was allegedly hired by her to eliminate her elder son but later ended up robbing and killing her with the help of an aide, was arrested here, city police said on Saturday. Ajaykumar alias Laxmisagar alias Kimtishree Rajnarayan Mishra was wanted in connection with the murder of one Shakuntala Devi under Tikrapara police station limits in Raipur in 2021, Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) of Ahmedabad city police said, adding that a process was underway for Mishra’s formal handover to Raipur police. Officials said Mishra was allegedly hired by Shakuntala and her younger son Amit Yadav to murder her elder son Ajay over a property dispute. "

Shakuntala and Amit were embroiled in a bitter property dispute with Ajay. As such, they approached Kimtishree Rajnarayan Mishra, who worked with Amit as a security guard at a hospital in Raipur," the Crime Branch said in a statement. ”

Knowing Mishra’s criminal background, the mother-son duo allegedly offered him Rs 4 lakh "supari" (contract) for Ajay Yadav’s murder. As advance, an amount of Rs 1 lakh was paid to him."

However, Mishra fled to his hometown without completing the assignment, leading to Shakuntala and Amit tracking him there and allegedly demanding that he either complete the "job" or pay them back Rs 1 lakh. To buy time, the accused promised to finish the work soon. "

Four months later, Mishra and his associate Ketan alias KT Ramsundar Tiwari visited Shakuntala’s house in Raipur under the pretext of executing the contract. Upon arriving, they discovered that Amit was in jail for an offence, leaving Shakuntala home alone. Seizing the opportunity, the duo changed their plan from contract killing to robbery," said the statement.

That night, they stayed at Shakuntala Yadav's house and the following morning, they allegedly strangled Shakuntala Yadav to death with a rope. The accused stole around Rs 10 lakh in cash and 30-35 tolas of gold jewelry before fleeing. The accused sold the stolen gold to a trader in Kaushambi, UP.

To evade the police for nearly five years, the accused stopped using mobile phones and avoided using any government ID cards (PAN/Aadhaar) to remain untraceable. The Crime Branch said, "

Ajay Kumar hid in Goa, then moved to the Naroda area of Ahmedabad in 2022 to stay with his brother and subsequently shifted to Mumbai. He continuously moved between cities where he lived under several aliases."